


The Future is Void

by Chronacle



Category: Cardfight!! Vanguard
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, BUT ITS FINALLY HERE, Chaos, Fluff, Gyze & Mikuru Co-Parent Chrono, ITS BEEN 10000 YEARS, Life Advice from the Deity of Destruction, No Beta we die like Miguel, Pretty much everyone is here - Freeform, Who Left Gyze in Charge of this Small Child?, but right now the ones listed are the main folks
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:48:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27628418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chronacle/pseuds/Chronacle
Summary: In which Gyze makes an appearance a little bit ahead of schedule. By a whopping 10 years.
Relationships: Anjou Tokoha & Kiba Shion & Shindou Chrono, Gyze & Shindou Chrono, Shindou Mikuru & Shindou Chrono
Comments: 17
Kudos: 23





	1. Snapshots

Chrono’s earliest memory was waking up in the hospital. He was four.

Mikuru was hovering over him, and he himself had his right hand bound tight in bandages along with other bruises on his body. He overheard the doctors telling his aunt about an ‘accident’ he was in- his hand was apparently burned- and that he was dropped off by a man they didn’t recognize. After he was deemed stable, the man had supposedly vanished from the building without a trace. The staff of course looked all over for him, wanting to know what connection he could have to Chrono and what this so-called accident was, but he was long gone. That had been about a week ago.

For some reason, he felt abandoned.

After he was discharged with a clean bill of health, he was almost immediately dropped off at an orphanage. Mikuru was still only in high school, so she wouldn’t be able to take care of him until she graduated. She always made sure to visit him after school and spend time talking and playing with him so he wouldn’t feel alone. As he got older, he would wonder just how late she stayed up in order to keep up with her classes- she spent so much time with him, sometimes into the late afternoon or even early evening. But at the time, he was always so happy whenever she visited, he never thought too hard about it.

As the first year went by, and Mikuru having to spend more time on her studies (she wanted to be able to adopt him as soon as she could), Chrono found himself alone. There were other children in the orphanage, but they were all _so loud_ that he would stay as far away as possible. He didn’t like being alone, but he knew it was better this way, better to be apart than a bother. His aunt had noticed during one of her increasingly rare visits (Chrono was nearly five at the time, but he understood why she couldn’t come as often- he still loves her) and had asked the doctor during one of his checkups about this (his hand still had yet to heal). They theorized that Chrono’s aversion to noise was because of whatever accident he was in, but without knowing what actually happened they couldn’t say for sure. Deep down though, Chrono felt like that was right.

_~~(Even deeper down in a place he never wanted to go something called out for the silence.)~~ _

It was left at a ‘I’m sure as he grows older, he’ll grow out of it’ and Chrono was brought back to his temporary home. But he never did and that small void that formed the moment he woke up, born from the feeling of abandonment, continued to grow.

**_~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~_ **

The rest of Chrono’s fourth and most of his fifth year was a blur of numbness. But that in fifth year it also turned into resentment. If it was towards himself or the world, that was up to him.

Most of that year was, ‘gray’ for lack of better word. The world felt dull, muted. Chrono was quick to pick up and understand what the adults around him talked about, but as a five-year-old, there was only so much he could understand.

~~The words ‘burden’, ‘stressful’, ‘worried’ and the such were easy to understand though.~~

He couldn’t tell you what caused it, but one day he woke up angry. Angry at… he didn’t know what. Himself? The orphanage? The other kids? _~~Everything?~~_ It was like every emotion he should have felt upon waking up with no memory of anything else and what came after came crashing down on him in that moment and left him coiled like a tightly turned spring ready to lash out at anything and everyone.

(Not Mikuru. Never Mikuru.)

The orphanage kids somehow could tell that they should stay away from him, even the caretakers were cautious. Of course, there were some kids who disregarded Chrono’s hostility and actively tried to provoke him. Whether it was his metabolism or something else, he was fairly small for his age- a perfect target.

Later that day however, a broken nose, multiple scratches, bruises, black eyes and a broken leg later and all the kids were staying far away from Chrono. Mikuru was informed, and he hated how she had to apologize for him and to him for his behavior (She thought it was because she didn't spend enough time with him, so he acted out). She was already under enough pressure as is, trying to make a home for the both of them.

His right hand _burned_.

**_~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~_ **

When Chrono was barely six, he made the first and only friend he would have for a long, long time.

There was nothing special about that particular day either. There was a storm going on outside of the orphanage and Chrono was hiding in his room trying to will away the storm as per the norm. The other kids were playing games in the room below him, and the caretakers have long since given up on trying to coax him out during days like this (that didn’t mean some of the younger, newer additions who didn’t know his temperament didn’t try). That was fine, he couldn’t stand the constant noise on top of the storm. At least in his shared room their voices were somewhat muffled.

Despite what they tried, he still had yet to become accustomed to crowds and loud noises. This only got worse as the years went by, and Chrono hated how much it made Mikuru worry. He didn’t want to bother her any more than he already did, it was unfair.

Chrono whimpered and curled up a little tighter as another crash of lightening sounded. What he wouldn’t give for total silence right now! He didn’t know why it was so jarring when most of the kids could easily brush it off. All he knew was that loud noises equal something bad, so he hid. Not for the first or last time, he wished Mikuru was there to keep him safe, to not be alone ~~even when that was better for everyone~~. He wished he wasn’t scared anymore, that he didn’t need help for something like braving a small thunderstorm. His hand burned-

_Are you scared?_

“No!” Shouted Chrono.

_Then why are you crying?_

“I don’t like the noise! I hate it!” He cried. Did the storm get louder? Everything feels echo-y.

_Calm yourself, you are breathing erratically._

Was he? He did feel lightheaded.

_What was it Gastille recommended? Breathe in for five seconds, breathe out for another five. Repeat._

Chrono followed the instructions, he didn’t know what else to do, and soon enough he was not dizzy anymore. The storm was still going on, but he felt better. He raised his head to thank the stranger (Mikuru always said you should thank people who help you) but found himself alone. Did they leave? He didn’t hear the door open.

 _I am still here._ Chrono squeaked and looked around.

“Where?” He asked.

 _With you._ That didn’t answer his question! He then said so.

“That doesn’t help!”

The voice huffed and went silent at that. Chrono was now leaning against the wall rather than trying to meld into it, and the thunderstorm seems to have subsided for now. Down below the other kids also seem to have quieted down as well. They probably exhausted themselves and are bound to come back up for the night soon.

A beat.

“… Are you still there?” A low rumble sounded in his head, making him jump.

Two beats.

“… Who are you, mister?” It sounded like a man, so ‘mister’ it was!

_It is common courtesy to introduce yourself first._

“Cour… what?”

_It is polite… nice… to give your name first._

Oh.

“I’m Chrono.”

 _Ah. The Singularity._ The what? The voice didn’t elaborate.

Chrono pouted. “… Aren’t you gonna say your name? It common cour-tes-ney.”

 _Courtesy._ The voice corrected. _I suppose as we will be together for the foreseeable future, I can grant you that knowledge. I am Gyze._

The six-year-old smiled. “Nice to meet you, Gyze!”

**_~ - ~ - ~ - ~ - ~_ **

_Gyze had woken up to a small but bright light._

_Following its defeat at Messiah’s hands and army, they had been sealed away, some place they could not actively influence Cray or the other world. Their loyal Apostle Gastille proved to be quite useful in carrying out their will in the meantime, gathering others to their cause. But with no access to the other world where their Zeroth Dragons were sealed away, Gyze spent those centuries sleeping, planning, and biding its time for when an opportunity arises to be released._

_Then one day, a small voice reached its ears, a light coming with it. It was childlike, asking ‘Where am I? What is this place? Help me! Where am I!?’ It was completely out of place and, after years of silence, so_ loud _. It was impossible to ignore it, and Gyze had nothing else to do but listen if a response was made. Soon enough…_

_“Is anyone there?” A voice answered. It sounded almost equally as young, but there was something in it that had Gyze’s attention. Something not found on Cray. “What are you doing?”_

_“I’m caught in a bend, help! Which way should I go?” Asked the first child. In the meantime, Gyze had moved towards where the voices echoed from. In this ‘prison’, there was nothing to indicate an up or down, north, south, east, or west. It was a dreamscape-like place with no exit. But there was a pulling force coming from one ‘direction’, so Gyze followed it. And then-_

_“Come over here! I’m right here!”_

_A second, even brighter light emerged, and Gyze found itself looking outside of its prison and into a warped tunnel filled with minor holes. One side depicted Cray and all the surrounding moons, stars, and the sun, tranquil compared to the last time they saw it. In the near center was a small blue dragon, holding on for dear life trying not to get swept away into one of the gaps._

_On the other end was a small,_ human _child. While Cray did have its own class of ‘human’, like many of the United Sanctuary’s residents, Gyze could tell that this one was of Earth’s variety, the other world so connected to Cray’s own fate and yet completely out of reach._

 _And yet here was this child, effortlessly calling out them and, more importantly, creating a gateway_ out _._

_In another timeline, Chrono’s voice only reached Chrono Dran and pulled only him through to Earth. In that timeline, Gyze remained asleep in its prison for another 12 years until a proper path created by the yet to be made Stride Gate. Gyze’s name would only be known to the child when he was sixteen, surrounded by people who he fought and prevailed with in previous crises. The he and his teammates would fight against the Deity to protect their world and save their friend whom the being took as it’s host._

_This was not that timeline. Chrono’s voice reached beyond the barrier of Gyze’s prison. Reached to someplace it never should have and changed everything. Fate was now uncertain, but the gears adjusted and continued to turn._

_When Chrono reached out, Gyze reached back._


	2. Start

As per the norm, Chrono’s day started off with reapplying the bandages on his right hand.

Roughly ten years later and the burn on it still had yet to heal. It worried Mikuru beyond belief, but while the doctors were baffled, they concluded that, as it had yet to get worse or cause any real problems, the best they could do is keep up the burn treatment they’ve had him on since he was four. It didn’t really bother Chrono as much as it should. He’s come to recognize it as a sign that he was never truly alone, ~~even in the times he wishes he was~~. Although, he really could go without the episodes where his hand just outright refused to respond due to the pin-pricking shocks running through it.

Ambidexterity was truly a wonderful thing. Took forever until his left-handwriting was legible though.

Waking up to an empty apartment was also per the norm. Mikuru started work early in the morning and returned home even later into the night if she wasn’t traveling. On the rare occasion she would still be there when Chrono woke up, they would have a short breakfast together before she had to leave. Those times were few and far in between.

A glance through the fridge showed that Mikuru remembered to grab the lunch he had prepared the night before- she sometimes forgot to take it with her in her rush to leave and Chrono would take the premade meal for his own lunch. He would take it over to her job, but her workplace was at least an hour away from the apartment in the opposite direction of Harumi. She spent all her time working to earn enough so he could have a good home to come to and attend school, the least he could do was not let her come back to an absence note that he knew for a fact would make her worry about where he was if not the school.

Anyway, he still had some time before leaving for school, so he started to prepare his own breakfast and lunch. As per the norm, he offered the obligatory and deserved wince at the black smudge on the wall behind the stove top, it’s size betraying how severe the cause actually was. At least his partner was right in how to quickly fix the problem-

_(-Have I yet to be otherwise?-_

_‘The fire burns on the stove wall beg to differ.’_

_-How was I supposed to realize that mechanical apparatus could cause such a large spark?-_

_‘That was not a spark that was a fire and it’s called a stove. Also, ‘_ mechanical apparatus’? _Seriously?’_

_-Details.-_

_‘We nearly burnt down the apartment!’)_

-and Mikuru didn’t seem to notice there was anything wrong when she came back from her trip. Small blessings.

The television tittered on about the weather and local news as he pulled out the needed ingredients from the fridge. The weatherman mentioned something about rain even though it was obviously a very sunny day. Still though, the weather has been acting up and it was Spring, bringing an umbrella wouldn’t hurt…

His hand twitched in response to an acute burning sensation-

“Good morning, Gyze.” He softly muttered, not looking away from the stove.

 _-Good morning, Chrono.-_ Came the low rumble, a light pressing against his mind instantly making him feel relaxed. It was their routine- Every morning as Chrono prepared his meal for the day, Gyze would soon make his appearance in the ‘mind space’ that they apparently shared. Every night would end with them bidding good night to the other as well. It first started out as reassurance for a young Chrono that his friend had not suddenly left him alone and over time it became more of a habit, but it still was a source of comfort to the redhead.

 _-Are you prepared for the upcoming event?-_ In a few days the Dragon Empire Branch would be holding a Vanguard Quiz Tournament. Kamui had brought it up a week ago and, for once, Chrono decided he’d like to check it out.

“Definitely!” Chrono set the tray of food onto the dining table. “Karl’s been quizzing us on Units and their abilities. I just hope Overlords won’t be a huge part of it… I still haven’t gotten them all down.”

_-That’s not what I was referring to.-_

“…” He fiddled with his chopsticks. They’ve had this conversation more than once since Chrono decided to participate in the event.

“I can’t keep avoiding it. I need to get used to it if I’m going to be doing things on my own in the future. Besides, Kamui-san and the others will be there, if it gets too much, I’ll be okay.”

_-Regardless, going into the event with no preparation seems foolish.-_

“That’s what quests are for. I can practice until then.”

_-So long as you do as you say.-_

“Shut up.” He huffed, smiling. When had his friend become such a mother hen? Then again, with how long they’ve been stuck together, willingly or not, it was hard not to form a close bond.

Nearly eight whole years, and they have yet to be separated.

**_~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~_ **

After witnessing the student council collectively go on a man-hunt due to a ‘last-minute hiccup’ (who just loses a _whole printer?_ Chrono suspected the kid from 2-C, they’ve been pulling stuff like that since their first year. Whoever it is, hopefully Kiba will leave enough of them for their family to bury) days before a school event, he was on his way to the shop. Though he said he would practice his handling of large and loud crowds, that didn’t mean he couldn’t be productive about it- he was still just Grade 2.

It was for lack of trying to be perfectly honest. While quests were fun, he really did have other things to worry about, and even then, most of those quests were to fight or help test out someone’s deck. Trinity Dragon (and later Kamui) have been trying for literal years to get him to take more people-oriented quests, and while yes, he did do some occasionally (his ‘required dose of social activity’ says Tsuneto), people were just too, well, _too much_ sometimes. So, understandably, they were delighted when he said he’d join them for the Quiz Tournament.

(Afterwards, the trio dragged him aside to ask him if he was really sure about it and that he shouldn’t feel pressured to go, because he knows how he can get with crowds. Chrono might have snarked back about how he’s lived in the middle of the city for years now and that he wasn’t a little kid anymore, but he really was grateful.)

“Ah, Chrono!” Kamui greeted him from behind the counter. There was a large box on the counter next to him.

“Hey, Kamui-san.” He waved. “Are those the new shipment of cards?”

“Yep! We even got some new Oracle cards!” Kamui smirked. “You’ve been trying out the Witch archetype, right?”

Chrono rolled his eyes and pulled out the mentioned deck from his school bag. Karl had the _brilliant_ idea of them rouletting what decks Trinity Dragon- plus Chrono- would use for at least two weeks (yesterday was the last day) as a sort of team building exercise/expanding their horizons into the playstyle of other decks. Tsuneto still got Oracle Think Tank after _three separate tries_ _(“See! Oracle Think Tank and I are a perfect pair that not even the universe can separate!_ ”) which he thought was highly unfair (they compromised with him playing a different build than his usual one). “It was only for a couple of weeks, Kamui-san. To be honest they’re pretty fun to play, but I’ll stick with Regalias.”

“You sure?” He glared at him. Kamui held the box in his hands up, appeasing, as he inched towards the store’s storage closet. “Okay okay! I’ll stop teasing.”

It was an obvious lie- one does not simply stop getting teased by Katsuragi Kamui about these things.

Chrono rolled his eyes and busied himself with the quest board, taking note of where the quest would take place. There were a lot around a large neighborhood nearby, so that’d be a good place to start…

“You gotta admit though, you were a sight wearing-”

_“Kamui-san!”_

**_~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~_ **

Chrono ended up taking a quest in the large mall complex downtown in Shinjuku. It was reasonably crowded for such a place, so he had no trouble navigating his way to the meeting spot. The quest was to help test out a deck (he was willing to bet Kagero based on the Clan symbol next to the requestee’s name, but they could be trying out a new clan for all he knew) in a place called the ‘Vanguard Colosseum’.

Unfortunately, it was _significantly_ more crowded inside the building. Maybe it was because of the enclosed space ~~or the way noise seemed to bounce back and forth in his head in an endless loop why are people so _loud_~~ , but Chrono was already inching his hands towards the empty space around his neck and debating if it the quest was really worth the points. That one quest down near where his school was felt a lot more promising by the second…

He took a deep breath, reminding himself why he decided to go for a quest in a populated area. This was nothing.

Fighting his way past the crowded lines, he arrived at the Vangarou statue that served as the meeting point. The area around it was clear enough that he was able to properly take a look around. He had only been to the mall once before, and he didn’t remember seeing this place then. Then again, with how popular GIRS is- there was a sign outside saying they have access to the system- a more conventional way to access it outside of tournaments was bound to pop up. A mall just made sense.

The minutes ticked away, Chrono constantly glancing at his FICA in a nervous tick. There was still no sign of whoever he was supposed to meet. The crowd in the meantime thinned out to a more reasonable amount.

One minute to their meeting time. Were they seriously going to show up on the dot-

_~~\- | - | - | - | - | -~~ _

Chrono froze, chill going down his spine. It was the kind you got when you think you’re being watched by something you’d rather not have the attention of. Was there someone watching him? In the back of his head, he felt Gyze stir in curiosity and… something he doesn’t remember ever feeling from him?

“Are you Shindou Chrono?” He snapped his head towards the speaker, ignoring the thought for now. Turning to the voice, there stood a white haired, red-eyed man who looked nothing like what Chrono imagined to be his opponent. He seemed friendly enough with his smile and pleasant tone, but something deep down was screaming in caution against this man.

Hesitatingly, he nodded. “Yeah. You’re the one who put out the quest?”

“No.” The man shook his head. “Unfortunately, they weren’t able to make it. I’ll be testing his deck in his place, if that’s alright. You’ll still earn the points for the quest.” Chrono frowned. Who just doesn’t show up for their own quest? He really should’ve taken the quest by his school.

“It’s fine.” For as apprehensive as he was, he was here for a reason. So the fighter was switched out at the last minute, so what? As long as he got the points it should be fine.

_~~(And yet, why did he feel so … unnerved by this man.)~~ _

“Great. Follow me then.”

**_~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~_ **

“Is this really all you’re capable of?” Chrono could help but freeze at that.

They had been fighting for only a handful of turns when his opponent said that. He used a Kagero deck that specialized in retiring the opponent’s rear guard with effects that combed into increasing his own Units’ power. His opponent, while using a deck that wasn’t his own, and a new one at that, was strong. But if he had to say, not stronger than Anjou, Kiba, or Kamui.

He was regretting that assessment now.

As suddenly as that was said, the man took his turn and systematically wiped out his entire field, leaving only his Vanguard. With every Unit taken out came a scathing remark of how little he seemed to care for his Rear Guard compared to his Vanguard (his deck was based on an archetype that _literally_ prioritized the Vanguard with the Rear Guard as support what was he supposed to do, _not_ play into his deck’s strengths?), and his lack of thinking ahead when he had no cards to guard against a particularly vicious attack (which, admittedly, he was guilty of).

But what really hit was his speech about how a fight reveals everything about a person. How the man pointed at his lone Vanguard and said, “Look! This is the human you are!”, as if he knew exactly who Chrono was after a few turns of a single cardfight. As if he knew everything that there was to him, that despite the small handful of people he kept in company _~~(yet never actually relied upon)~~_ , he was alone.

_And it ticked him off._

So what if he never reached out? So what if he only relied on himself? It didn’t matter if the words cut so deep that he wanted to lash out at everything, that the words implied that he could _never_ be more than what he was if he continued on like this, _~~that he was burden as he was~~_ , how dare this _total stranger_ just waltz in and say that to his face!?

All he needed was himself, Gyze (who was proof he was _never_ alone) and Mikuru, that was _all he needed to moved forward._

He didn’t notice the GIRS system begin to glitch out as he called out his Stride, nor did he notice the look of _absolute shock_ on the man’s face or h ~~ow much clo _ser Gyz e’s pr ese n c e w a s-_~~

_~~\- | - | - | - | - | -~~ _

_~~\- | - | - | - | - | -~~ _

_~~\- | - | - | - | - | -~~ ~~~~_

_~~C h r~~ o no gasp_ed as he came back to himself.

His head buzzed with white noise and his hand burned with an intensity like he’d never experienced before. His body felt like it ran a marathon at top speed consistently with little break and even less breathing. He tried to grab the GIRS stand for support, but his right hand was not responsive, so he ended up on his knees supporting himself with his remaining functioning arm. He felt rather than heard Gyze asking if he was alright, a comforting weight against his mind. He sent back a shaky mental affirmative and to give him a minute to process _what the hell that was._

“… The GIRS system had an emergency shut down.” The man’s voice sounded far away, even as he walked right past him. “Our fight ends here.”

 _“Wait!”_ Chrono shouted, but he didn’t have the strength to turn around and demand who he was. As if knowing what he was going to ask, the other paused in his stride and without looking back-

“If you want to know, become stronger.” And like that, he was gone.

_~~(In some place distant, Gyze wondered if this fight marked the beginning of the end.)~~ _

**_~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~_ **

A few days after the quiz tournament, Chrono finds a deck in his school’s shoe locker from a Clan neither he nor Gyze had ever heard of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This would have come out a lot sooner if the fight decided to cooperate. :/ Parts of this chapter felt a little wonky while writing, so apologizes if it shows.
> 
> On another note, the OTT Witch bit was solely for the 1 AM brainworm of Witch!Chrono. That's the only reason. XD

**Author's Note:**

> Ya'll have no idea how much this fic was a long time coming. Consider it the first of the four horsemen.


End file.
